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Linguistics

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In defence of bad spelling

Tue 15 September 2020

English spelling is tricky to master. But the ancient hangovers, irregularities and frustrating rules of English spelling are what enables its continuity and a connection with billions of people across the globe argues Dr Christopher Strelluf, an expert in linguistics from the University of Warwick.

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Why you probably already speak some Cockney

Fri 01 March 2019

There's an underground campaign running to establish 3 of March as Speak Cockney Day. Dr Chris Strelluf from the Department of Applied Linguistics looks at some of the key characteristics of the Cockey accent and shows how many of us already adopt some of its traits.

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Talkin’ Like a Pirate? It be a linguistic treasure trove

Tue 18 September 2018

The ideas we have about Pirate Talk have much more to do with facts about language than facts about pirates. So, pretending that pirates really existed in the Treasure Island sense, here are four rules to follow when talking like a pirate, and the linguistic facts behind those rules.